“I hate that I never picked up on it.”
“You had a boyfriend, so why would you?” I shrug. “Either way, when Posey found out you were single, he practically did a backflip into the locker room to spread the news. From there, it was a giant mess of the boys trying to get me to ask you out and figure out ways to get you to look in my direction. That’s when Posey said I had a spare room for you to stay in.”
“Wait, did he say that so you could get closer to me?”
Feeling shy about it, I smooth my hand over my forehead. “Yeah, and I know it sounds pathetic, so don’t hold it against me.”
“I think it’s sweet,” she says as she plays with the buttons on my undone shirt. “Also kind of funny that Posey did that.”
“He loves inserting himself into our lives.”
“So when I came over that morning and the curtains were wrinkled . . . was that because you tried to straighten up your apartment for me?”
“Yeah. Posey helped me make your room look presentable, or at least we tried. Unfortunately we had a mishap when moving the beds.”
“What happened?” she asks as the boat picks up speed.
“I don’t think I can say this to you. You might be heartbroken.”
She taps her finger on my chest. “Remember what you said. You were going to be honest.”
“You’re right,” I say. “So you know how Posey said it would be a great solution to move in with me because you’d have a place to stay and Sherman wouldn’t be alone?”
“Yes . . .” she drags out.
“Well, Sherman wasn’t a thing. I didn’t have a plant. That morning before you came over, I went to the store and picked one up.”
“No . . . stop, that’s not true.”
“Sorry.” I shrug. “It is.”
She clutches her heart. “But that was one of the things I liked about you. You had a plant, and I thought that was so cute.”
“Well, I have a plant, and I do care about him. I think I know more about bonsai trees than I ever wanted to know. And I do have feelings for him now, but at first, he wasn’t real.”
“That is damaging.” She shakes her head. “I’ve lived a lie.”
I chuckle. “Well then, you might not want to know that’s the second Sherman, not the first.”
“What happened to the first?”
“When Posey and I switched the beds, the mattress slipped from our hands and knocked the original Sherman over. It was a fucking disaster. I had to call in reinforcements to clean up, get a new plant, and help set up the rest of the apartment. It’s why the curtains and bed sheets were wrinkled. We were in a mad dash to make the apartment nice before you got there, and soil from a dead Sherman wasn’t going to look good.”
“Poor original Sherman. He never even had a chance.”
“Sorry, he didn’t.”
“Wow, so is there anything else you deceived me about?”
I shake my head. “That was it. Anything that happened has been bad advice from the group, which . . . Penny was a part of.”
Her eyes widen. “What?”
“She was trying to help me get close to you.” I feel guilty saying that since they’re friends, and I’m sure that betraysPenny’s trust, but like I said, I want to be honest with Blakely. I don’t want any secrets or anything to ruin my chances of being with her.
“She was helping you?” I slowly nod, and she looks away. I can’t tell if she’s angry, upset, or happy. “Wow,” she says, shaking her head. Fuck, she’s angry. When she brings her eyes back to mine, she adds, “You would think my best friend would have been a better help. Goes to show how much she knows me.” She smirks and leans in to press a kiss to my lips.
Another wave of relief floods through me.
